Steam-actuated valve



(No Model.) 2 SheetsSheet 1.

' W. W. HANSGOM.

STEAM AOTUATED VALVE. No. 380,888. Patented Apr. 10, 1888'.

N PETERS, Pficlomhvgraphen Wanin ton, 04C

NITED STATES PATENT omc.

WILLIAM WVALLAOE HANSCOM, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

STEAlVl -ACTUATED VALVE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 380,888, dated April 1888 (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM WALLAcE HANSOOM, of the city and county of San Francisco, State of California, have invented an Improvement in Steam-Actuated Valves for Direct-Acting Engines; and I hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

My invention relates to certain improve ments in direct-acting engines, such as are usually employed for actuating pumps and similar reciprocating apparatus.

It consists in such a construction and arrangement of the parts as will greatly simplify them andfacilitate access to the working parts,

so that they may be adjusted or inspected by simply removing asingle cover or plate.

Referring to the accompanying drawings for a more complete explanation of my invention, Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section taken through the center of the steam chest and cylinder. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal horizontal section taken through the steam-chest in the plane at right angles with the section Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a transverse section taken through the steam-chest and the steam-inlet and exhaustports and cylinders. Fig. 4. is a transverse section taken through the line 7] Fig. 2.

A is the steam-cylinder, and B the steamchest, which is cast in one piece with the cylinder, instead of being made separate, as is usual with this class of engines, for the purpose of allowing the different ports and steampassages to be made between the steam-chest and the cylinder.

0 is the steam-chest cover, having projections extending downward into thesteam-chest, as shown at D, for the purpose of serving as guides for the main and supplemental valves which move within the steam-chest. Instead of making the ports and steam-passages upon the bottom of the steam-chest and between it and the cylinder, I have in the present case made these ports upon the sides, as shown, and the valves are fitted to travel over these ports. By this construction it is only necessary to remove the cover of the steam-chest, when access may be had to both the valves, which can be slipped out by lifting them vertically from their places.

E is the main steam-valve, which is made with two chambers on its inner side, having a dividing-rib between them, the valve being of what is known as the B form.

F is the auxiliary stem-valve, which is of the ordinary D form and travels against the opposite side of the steam-chest from the valve E.

P is the auxiliary piston, having the heads fitted to travel in the cylindrical ends or chambers beyond and at each end of the steamchest. These heads are united by a shank which is in cross-section of the form of a parallelogram, as shown more plainly in Fig. 3, and the valves fit into recesses formed by lugs upon each side of this shank and between the two heads of the supplemental piston, so that as this piston is reciprocated it carries with it the two valves. The auxiliary valve F fits closely within its recess formed by thelugs a, projecting from the sides of the shank, uniting the auxiliary piston'heads, and the main valve E has a certain amount of lost motion between the lugs 11 upon the opposite side of the shank, so that when the piston moves the auxiliary valve travels with it, while themain valve remains stationary until after the auxiliary valve has been moved far enough to open its steam-port and admit steam to complete the stroke of the auxiliary piston, which then carries the main valve over to admit steam to the main cylinder.

G G are the main steam=ports, and H the main exhaust-port, opening into a chamber on one side of the steam-chest.

J J are the auxiliary steam-porls, and K is the exhaust-port which discharges into the chamber at the opposite side of the steamchest from H, and this chamber is connected by a passage, L, with the corresponding passage of the main exhaust-portH upon the opposite side of the cylinder. This exhaustchamber discharges through the opening 0, with which the exhaust-pipe is connected. Steam is admitted through the opening N, where the steam-pipe is connected, to the channels M, which extend upon each side of the tends through one end of the auxiliary cylinder, and it has tappets R R fixed to it at certain distances apart.

S is the main piston, and T the main pistonrod, which extends out through the head of the main cylinder, and it has a tappet-arm, U, fixed to it at such a point that when the piston reciprocates, and just before it arrives at either end of its stroke, it strikes one of the tappets It, and thus moves the auxiliary piston in the same direction in which the main piston is moved.

V V represent the yoke or tie piece, which connects the steam-cylinder with the air or otherpumping cylinder when it is used in such a connection, and Wis the guide for the outer end of the auxiliary piston-rod.

The operation of the engine will then be as follows: The parts being in the position shown in the accompanying drawings, the main piston will be nearly at the left end of its stroke, and the tappet-arm U upon its piston-rod, striking the tappet R at that end of the auxiliary piston-rod, will move the auxiliary piston a little in the same direction in which the main piston is moving, carrying with it the auxiliary valve, which fits closely in the recess of the auxiliary piston. The valve is thus moved sufficiently to open the steam-port J, admitting steam behind the auxiliary piston, which is then immediately carried to the same .end of its stroke with the main piston and completes its stroke. With this movement it carries the main valve E, so as to open communication between the left-hand chamber, 6, of the valve and the port G, which communicates with the left end of the cylinder, thus admitting steam, which passes from the steam-chest through the left chamber, e, of the valve, thence through the port G to the cylinder, so as to impel the piston to the opposite end of its stroke. Nhen the piston nearly reaches the right end of the cylinder, the tappet-arm upon its piston-rod engages the right tappet upon the auxiliary piston-rod and moves the auxiliary piston in the same direction toward the right, carrying with it the auxiliary valve, so as to open the left steampassage, J, to admit steam behind the auxiliary piston, thus completing its stroke to the right, and as it moves it carries with it the valve E, so as to close the connection between the ingress-port G and the cylinder at the left and open communication between the right-hand port and the right end of the cylinder through the chamber 6 at the right of the steam-valve E. At the same time communication is opened between the left end of the cylinder and the exhaustport Hthrough the left chamber, a, of the valve E, thus exhausting the steam from the left end of the main cylinder, and the auxiliary valve has already been brought into the same relative position for exhausting the steam from the end of the auxiliary cylinder. By placing the main and auxiliary valves upon opposite sides of the steam-chest I am enabled to take out the valves at any time by simply removing the steamchest cover 0, and without the necessity of removing the steam-chest, as in most or all other direct-acting steam-engines. The two valves are carried in the recesses on the opposite sides of the auxiliary piston, the recess for the main valve being, as before described, a little longer than the valve, so that by means o f th1s lost motion of the main valve the auxiliary valve is allowed to open its, port and admit steam behind the auxiliary piston a little before the main "alve opens the port to the main cylinder and while it is moving in its forward direction, thus preventing any dead-point and making a positive motion for the ma n piston.

By constructing the main valve in the B, form and the auxiliary in the D form the auxiliary piston has its movement in the same direction as that of the main piston, and I am thus enabled to dispense with all reverse motion for the auxiliary piston and devices for producing it, thus reducing the number of parts outside of the cylinders and the chest to a single tappetarm'on the main p1sto n-rod and the two tappets on the auxiliary p stonrod. This does away with all sliding oints and decreases the wear of outside valvemotion and the necessity of the frequent ad ustment of the same.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a direetacting engine, the main cylinder and the steam-chest cast together, having the main steam and exhaust ports upon one side of the steam-chest and the auxiliary steam and exhaust ports upon the opposite side, in combination with the main and auxiliary valves having their seats upon opposite sides of the steam-chest, substantially as and for the purpose herein described.

2. In a direct-acting engine, the main and auxiliary valves fitted to travel against opposite sides of the steam-chest, which form the seats therefor, corresponding main and auxiliary ports communicating with the sides of the steam-chest, and the auxiliary piston having recesses upon opposite sides of its intermediate shank for the purpose of driving the Valves, substantially as herein described.

3. In a direct'acting engine, the steam-chest ICC having main and auxiliary ports upon its opauxiliary valves fitting these faces upon opposite sides of the steam-chest, an auxiliary piston by which the main and auxiliary valves are actuated, a piston-rod extending outward from said piston, having tappets fixed to it, and a main piston and piston-rod having a tappet-arm fixed to it, so as to engage the tappets upon the auxiliary piston-rod, substantially as herein described.

5. In a direct-acting engine, the main valve of the 8- form, and an auxiliary valve of the D form having their seats upon opposite sides of the steam-chest, in combination with the main and auxiliary pistons, ports for steam and exhaust for both, main and auxiliary valves upon opposite sides of the steamchest, and the main and auxiliary pistons and 

